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E. DEATH. MACHINE FOR SGUTGHING AND CLEANING FIBROUS STEMS 0R LEAVES.No. 483,984. Pate ntedoot. 4, 1892.

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E. DEATH. MACHINE FOR SUUTOHING AND CLEANING FIBROUS $TEMS 0R LEAVES.

No. 483,984. Patented Oct. 4, 1892.

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' UNITE EPHRAIM DEATH, OF LEICESTER, ENGLAND.

MACHINE FOR SCUTCHING AND CLEANING FIBROUS STEMS 0R LEAVES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 483,984, dated October4, 1892. Application filed January 27, 1892- Serial No. 419,450. (Nomodel.) Patented in England July 10,1891, No. 11,763.

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known thatl, EPHRAIMDEATH, a citizen of England, residing at AlbertWorks, Leicester, in the county of Leicester, England, have invented newand useful Improvements in Machines for Scutching and Cleaning FibrousStems or Leaves, (for which I have obtained a patent in Great Britain,No. 11,763, dated July 10, 1891,) of which the following is aspecification.

My invention relates to apparatus specially adapted for separating thepulpy portions from the fibers of the stems or leaves of fibrous plantsin a green state. In such machines there is usually a feed-plate rigidlyfixed level or nearly level with the axis of a revolving beater-wheel orthere is a movable curve which can be advanced toward the beater.

According to my invention I dispense with the stationary feed-plate andmovable curve and employ a flat table, on which I lay the stems orleaves to be operated on. The table is moved on horizontal guides, or itmay be partly on rollers, to and fro under the beaterwheel, theaxle-bearings of which are made adjustable vertically to suit theworking distance of the heaters above the table. As the wheel revolvesthe beaters clean the leaves or stems laid upon the table, water beingpreferably, but not necessarily, distributed over them.

To hold the leaves or stems on the table, their ends farthest from thewheel are pinched in a clamp, and in order to hold the cleaned fibersdown upon the table while it is being drawn back a curved plate orpresser is lowered upon them, this presser extending across the tableand being carried by radial arms, so that it can be moved up or downnearly concentric with the beater-wheel.

Figure l is a side view, Fig. 2 is a plan,Fig. 3 is a half transversesection on the line X X of Fig. 2, and Fig. 4: is a half end View, ofapparatus according to my invention for scutching and cleaning fibrousstems or leaves. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section of apparatus on asmaller scale for the same purpose.

In all the figures like parts are indicated by like letters ofreference.

A is the flat table, which, as shown in Fig. 3, may slide on ways B, or,as shown in Fig. 5 and by dotted lines in Fig. 1, may be arranged to runon rollers O. For apparatus of the larger sizes, as shown in Figs. 1, 2,and 3, I employ a hand-wheel D, with suitable gear and pinion acting onrack E to move the table to and fro. For the smaller sizes, as shown inFig. 5, these parts may be dispensed with,

the table being moved to and fro by hand applied to the lever F. At theend of the table is fixed on it a bar or plate G with a V-shaped groove.Above this is a V -shaped bar H, which, being brought down toward thebar G, clamps the stems or leaves that are to be operated on. Thisclamping may be eifected, as shown in Fig. 5, by pushing down the leverF, or in the larger apparatus by turning a hand-wheel I, the spindle ofwhich is a differential screw, causing a cross-head J to descend, andwith it a double cross-head K, between the two limbs of which theclamp-bar H is pivoted at its middle, so that it can accommodate itselfto inequalities of the material which it clamps.

Above the table the beater-wheel L is mounted in vertically-adj ustablebearings, and is, as usual, covered by a casing M. On the bearings ateach side is pivoted aradial arm N, and these arms have attached to thema curved presser-plate P, which extends across the table and serves tohold the cleaned fiber down on the table while it is drawn back. Thispresser-plate can be raised by the operator turning a barrel Q, windingon a cord attached to the middle of the presser-plate or by othersuitable means.

Having thus described the nature of my invention and the best means Iknow for carrying the same into practical effect, I claim 1. Inapparatus for scutching and cleaning fibrous stems or leaves, thecombination, with a revolving scutching-wheel armed with beaters, of aflat movable table carrying the ma terial to be operated upon and meansfor moving said table to and fro under the soutchingwheel, substantiallyas described.

2. In apparatus for scutching and cleaning fibrous stems or leaves, thecombination, with a revolving scutching-wheel armed with beaters, of afiat movable table carrying the ma-- terial to be operated upon, a clampfor clamping the material to said table, and means for moving said tableto and fro under the scutch ing-wheel, substantially as described.

3. In apparatus for scutching and cleaning fibrous stems or leaves, thecombination, with a revolving scutching-wheel armed with beaters, of aflat movable table carrying the material to be operated upon, means formoving said table to and fro under the scutohing- Wheel, and a curvedpresser-p1ate for holding down the material operated on during thereturn stroke of the table, substantially as de- IO scribed.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses, this 14th day of January, A. D.1892.

EPHRAIM DEATH. Witnesses:

A. T. HALL,

Aylestone Rd., Leicester,

ARTHUR WALTON DEATH,

Tower Street, Leicester.

